Electronic devices perform many useful and desirable functions that improve our lives everyday, whether it is our recreation, our profession, or even our health. Recreationally, these electronic devices include, but are not limited to, computers, home entertainment systems, televisions, stereos, and video game equipment. Professionally, electronic devices include computers, fax machines, scanners, photocopiers, network servers and many other devices. In the healthcare field, electronic patient monitoring and diagnostic systems are now a common component of the treatment and care that a patient receives at a medical care facility. All of these electronic devices have a common feature in that they require multiple power and/or data cables that extend from each of these devices to either other devices, or an external source of data, such as when a patient is hooked up to a patient monitoring system. One problem associated with the use of many electronic devices is that the cables extending from these devices commonly become tangled. Tangled cables not only may harm power supplies or data transmission, but the tangled cables and cords also make the full extension of the cords difficult. Furthermore, electronic data cords that are tangled and/or not orderly positioned are more likely to be damaged and/or pulled out of a connection with an associated electronic device.
Systems have been developed to address these concerns. One of these solutions is the use of a retractile cord, such as a telephone cord, where the cord itself is shaped such that the cord may be extended relatively easily, however the cord retracts upon itself to form a tightly wound coil that is more resistant to kinking and tangling. Yet another alternative solution is the use of a mechanical and/or spring loaded retracting case within which the electrical wires are attached, such that the electrical wires may be extended out for use, and after use, may be retracted back into the case. An alternative solution has been to use individual ties, clips, or pieces of tape to bundle the electrical wires together such that all of the electrical wires are held together in a single movable bundle. Alternatively, bundle ties exist that wind around a plurality of electrical wires to hold the wires together. Another form of bundler includes a plastic sleeve or cover, within which the electrical wires are disposed and held together.
The electrical wire organization solutions described above are all limited in their effectiveness as each of the systems make it difficult to switch between a condition in which the electrical wires are bundled and a condition in which the electrical wires are free to be moved individually. Furthermore, these prior art bundlers are limited in that it is difficult to change the electrical wires that are bundled together, such as in the event of the need to replace one or more of the electrical wires, or the addition of a new electrical wire to the bundle. Bundlers known in the art make it difficult to access the individual wires from the bundle when it is desired to use a wire individually in a different direction than the other electrical wires in the bundle. Furthermore, while some of the bundlers in the prior art retract the power cord into the bundler, or the electrical wire itself retracts upon itself, none of the current bundlers themselves are retractable such that the length bundler is extendable to bundle any desired length of the electrical wire.
Therefore, it is desirable in the field of electronic devices for a bundling apparatus that holds electrical wires together, but is retractable or movable to allow access or movement to individual electrical wires during use. Furthermore, a bundling apparatus that is removably attachable to the electrical wires is desired such that the bundling apparatus need only be used when wire bundling is needed. Furthermore, it is desirable for the bundling apparatus to include a mechanism by which the bundling apparatus is movable from an extended position, wherein the electrical wires are held in a bundle, and a contracted position wherein the electrical wires are free to be individually moved.
In the healthcare field, a patient monitoring device, such as patient vital sign monitors (VSM), monitors basic psychological parameters of a patient. Patient monitoring devices require a number of electrical wires to be attached to the patient, either in the form of electrodes which are attached to the skin of the patient, or to an alternative physiological parameter transducer, such as a pressure sensor in a blood pressure monitoring cuff, or an SPO2 sensor attached to the patient's ear or finger. Therefore, a patient monitoring system requires a plurality of wires to be attached to the patient. These wires have a high likelihood of being tangled or damaged during the transport of the patient monitoring system to the location where it is to be used. Therefore, it is desirable to maintain the electrical wires in a bundled condition during the transport of the patient monitoring system. Alternatively, it is desirable to have the electrical wires to be partially bundled during use of the patient monitoring system, such that the electrical wires are bundled until the are at a position that is close to the patient. Once the monitoring system is in position, the electrical wires may be branched out individually to the specific locations on the patient from which the desired psychological data is acquired.